10 year old trucks

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DickHutchings

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I'm still looking for a truck to haul my 42' 5th wheel. I'm in no hurry as I don't retire for 2 more years. I don't want to spend all my savings on a truck or have a loan so I'm considering older trucks that won't wipe out my savings. How reliable are these 2006 - 2008 trucks? Most have 150+ miles on them. Would I be better off with a newer model maybe up to 2012 and a small loan?

I hope there are some of you with older trucks that can give me some good feedback.
Thanks
 
I found a 2001 F350 that was nicely equipped and had 114K miles on the clock for $10K. Use a broker. I recommend Syd Dorn. He finds vehicles for people all over the 50 states and some foreign countries. I have bought 2 trucks and a car, my brother got his truck, my daughter got her car and my son got two cars through Syd. He is honest, efficient and well connected in the auto industry (been doing it for decades). He won't deal with shady dealers and has been instrumental in getting laws changed in Oregon to protect consumers from predatory dealers.

I am not related to Syd, nor do I work for him. I am just really glad to have a broker I can trust for my automotive needs. Give him a try, but be ready to buy when you call him. He has never taken more than 48 hours to find me the vehicle I wanted at a price I couldn't pass up.
 
Have a 2007 dually with 38K miles on it.  Reliable as heck.  There were a few recalls for reflash the ECU.  Since then its been great.  BTW it will likely be for sale in August
 
donn said:
Have a 2007 dually with 38K miles on it.  Reliable as heck.  There were a few recalls for reflash the ECU.  Since then its been great.  BTW it will likely be for sale in August
Click to expand...

Cool, keep my posted. I may not be ready yet but for the right deal...
 
With a trailer of that size, I would be looking at newer.
Newer trucks have more of the safety features (or whatever) that gives them a much larger towing capacity.
Keeps you legal and safe.

After tying that, I guess that is not as true for dually's.
 
Have you considered a Class 8 tractor (big rig)?  Don't laugh, they're surprisingly affordable and some RVers have found them to be great alternatives to trucks like the F350/450/550 series for hauling large 5th wheels.

Take a look at http://www.hhrvresource.com/
 
^good suggestion^
MDT's & HDT's are the same width as a 350/3500 dually, only about 2' longer when singled, and probably no higher than the fiver. With some of the fiver's I see getting pulled around with trucks that are obviously too small, I don't know why more folks aren't using MDT's and HDT's.
 
Sorry, I have to laugh. There's no way I'm going to drive one of those around town for shopping and stuff. Once I get the truck I want it will be my daily driver while we are on the road during the winters. I'm sure they are great haulers though, just not for me.
 
My days of buying brand new vehicles are over.  I've bought several houses cheaper than the $40,000 to $60,000 trucks on the market now.

An advantage to an older diesel truck is not having to use DEF. 

I'd buy used for sure, even if you have to spend a couple grand fixing it up, tires, etc.  you are still ahead of the game.

My motorhome is 2004 and my toad is  a 2000 and my wife's car is a 2004.  Seems to work fine for me.
 
I'm at 197K with mine and still strong, you can do a lot of maintenance with the 30-40K saved by buying used if needed.
 
While it's not big enough to pull a fifth wheel, my 2007 F-150 work truck has 268k. Just tagged it for 2 more years. Might have to do some front end work before the tags run out though.
 
Mine has 201,000 on it and will be 11 years old in November.  I've been really pleased with it.  However, I may go ahead and trade up this winter before we head to Alaska next summer.  I sure like the new ones, even with the dreaded DEF!
 
I bought my 2006 F350 DRW 6.0 2 years ago and had it shipped from TX to NY.  226,xxx when I got it.  I now have 234,5xx on it and have not had a single issue.  There was some maintenance to do but once done not a single hitch since and I really enjoy driving it anytime I can. 

It took me about 6 months to find the exact configuration I needed. 

Make sure you research the truck and engine you are looking at so you can understand any shortcomings and be prepared for them.  By now all issues have been identified and solutions are out there.

On my 6.0 the biggest issues are the STC fitting, stand pipes and dummy plugs.  Head bolts are an issue but I don't have any signs of head gasket problems right now.  I keep an eye on things using a bluetooth OBDII adapter and Torque Pro on my android radio. 

I would get in the truck and drive to Cali right now if I needed to, without hesitation.
 
robertusa123 said:
I tow with a 22 year old truck  1995  130,000 miles
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You and me both!  A "10 year old truck" would seem downright new to me.  ;)  My '95 Suburban (2500 series, 3/4 ton) has a 10k# towing capacity and does a very good job pulling my 32' travel trailer.  It was a diamond in the rough when I found it a couple years ago (after many months of searching and shopping), babied by its first owner and around 98k miles at the time.  Most similar Suburbans I found advertised were 175k miles or north, and I did not want to go that high... although I've been told these things will go well beyond 200k if treated right.
 
No issues with all the older trucks.
But all that have posted thus far are not pulling a 42' 5ver.
Nor are you full time pulling which I believe the OP is looking to do.
 
A 42' fiver is pushing the limits of any 3500/F-250. How much traveling are you planning to do? If full timing you will pile up miles pretty quick and things will start to fail on an older vehicle. We have an 05 Ram ctd we are most pleased with but it is starting to show it's age, stuff needs fixing and we don't use it heavily.
 
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